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Research review recommends eliminating widely ordered blood test for diagnosing heart attacks

Review is first publication from national consortium of academic medical centers working to eliminate unnecessary medical tests, treatments and procedures » Read more Source: Science Daily

Benefits of continued statin use after adverse reactions

Patients who continued receiving statin prescriptions had lower rates of death and cardiovascular events » Read more Source: Science Daily

Screening reduces mortality for those with detectable type 2 diabetes but not for general population, large studies find

Screening for type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular risk factors may not reduce mortality and cardiovascular disease in the general population, suggests new research. » Read more Source: Science Daily

GW researcher finds centenarians have lower incidence of chronic illness, contributing to longer health span

Centenarians have a lower incidence of chronic illness than those in their 80s and 90s, according to research from the George Washington University (GW). » Read more Source: MDLinx

Medicare reimbursement not yet boosting advance care planning

Medicare’s reimbursement for advance care planning (ACP) appears to have been “largely ineffective” at encouraging clinicians to discuss ACP with their patients, at least in the first 3 months after the reimbursement went into effect, a new study reports. » Read more Source: MDLinx

Cellular stress in the brain may contribute to non-alcoholic fatty liver disease

Disruptions in a protein folding process occurring in the brain, known as endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress may cause non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, independent of other factors. » Read more Source: MDLinx

Proper tools may help prevent medicine errors at home

Providing parents with picture–based instructions–and with dosing tools that closely match the amount of medication needed–may help reduce cases of medication overdoses in children, researchers say. » Read more Source: MDLinx

Exposure to cardiovascular risk factors linked with arterial distensibility in adolescence

The longitudinal study on children and adolescents conducted by the Research Centre of Applied and Preventive Cardiovascular Medicine at the University of Turku is unique worldwide. The study shows that cardiovascular risk factors, such as overweight, high blood pressure, low–density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol and insulin resistance, are associated with arterial distensibility in adolescence. Arterial distensibility […]

Potentially harmful drug and herb interactions in cancer patients

Cancer patients receiving chemotherapy should have all their medications and herbal supplements reviewed by a pharmacist who specializes in cancer therapy, researchers say. » Read more Source: MDLinx

New opioid use in older adults with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease associated with increased risk of cardiac death

Older adults with chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder who recently started using opioids have an increased risk of coronary artery disease–related death compared to non–opioid users, researchers at St. Michael’s Hospital have found. » Read more Source: MDLinx